Bio-based excipients to enhance the stability of avian immunoglobulin Y (IgY) antibodies

Abstract

Avian immunoglobulin Y (IgY), present in chicken’s egg yolk, is a promising antibody to be used as biopharmaceutical [1]. IgY displays high binding avidity and immunogenicity, being non-invasibly recovered [2]. By being a polyclonal antibody, identifies numerous epitopes on an antigen, being employed for instance in the treatment of diseases [1-3]. Since IgY comes from a complex source their recovery at high purity and yields and preservation are difficult, constraining their use as biopharmaceuticals [1]. IgY antibodies were isolated from commercial chicken egg´s yolk and purified. Their stability was evaluated by Circular Dichroism Spectroscopy under 1-3 weeks of storage at -20 ºC, with and without sucrose, trehalose, sorbitol, and xylitol. The IgY purity and percentage of aggregates formed during storage were revealed by Size Exclusion- High Performance Liquid Chromatography, and protein profile unveil by dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. All compounds exhibit promising results, since a reduction in the percentage of aggregates was found in IgY formulations during storage. β-sheets in IgY secondary structure were verified, and no substantial evidence of its degradation occur during storage with the stabilizers, implying that its secondary structure was maintained. Novel bio-based compounds have been recognized as promising stabilizers to enhance the stability of IgY antibodies, envisaging their use as excipients in IgY therapeutic formulations.